Page 61 of The Dating Pact

Not to mention, I was jealous of whoever this woman was, who so easily made Jude forget about what happened between us. Not once or twice, but three times!

Sex was a big deal for me, and I knew Jude planned on sowing his wild oats or whatever, but it had never occurred to me to go back to the app to find a match. That he would go back to the app.

So maybe, for a minute or two, I’d become disoriented by my delusion, believing what had happened between us meant something more for him too, but…

I slapped on a smile and volunteered myself to babysit. Because I was a mature adult and Jude’s friend. And I could be happy for him.

“I get it! I get it!” Amelia shouted a moment before she swung the door wide open. “Hi!”

“Hey, girlfriend.” I rubbed her back when she threw herself around my leg, hugging me tight, along with Small Unicorn. “Daddy said you’re gonna stay with us tonight!”

“I am. You happy?”

She nodded, practically vibrating.

“Me too.”

“Will you play Go Fish?”

I bent down to her level, telling her seriously, “I would love to play Go Fish with you.”

“Yes!” She took off, sliding on the wood floor with her socks on. “I’mma get them!”

I closed the door behind me, poking my head around the wall to the dining room, finding it cluttered with backpacks, toys, papers, and shoes. Walking into the kitchen, I spotted Sebastian over the pass-through, lounged out on the couch in the living room as Amelia tossed pillows around, on the hunt for her Go Fish cards.

“Hey, Seb.”

He briefly turned to me and waved before going back to his handheld gaming system.

“Found it!” Amelia raced toward me, smacking into my legs. “See? See? It’s-it’s-it’s fish. All different fish! What’s your favorite fish?”

“Hm. I don’t know. No one has ever asked me before.”

“Swordfish? Starfish? Seahorse?” she guessed rapid-fire.

“Yeah, maybe seahorse. What’s?—”

“Hey.”

I spun around as Jude entered the kitchen, tugging at the collar of his short-sleeved black button-down. With his hair slicked back, his beard trimmed, and his sun-kissed tan, he looked… Well, he looked hot.

He held his arms out for my inspection and, as if to rub it in, asked, “What do you think?”

I deliberately dragged my gaze over his body. From the two buttons open at the top of his shirt, to the black shorts that fit his thighs perfectly, down to the dark-gray canvas shoes, and then back up. I gave him a thumbs-up.

The corners of his eyes crinkled as he squinted, like he didn’t believe me.

I brushed my hand across the front of his shirt. “Fits you really well.”

“Thank you.” He tugged at his collar again then bent to pick up Amelia. He kissed her temple. “Be good for Brooke, okay?” He kept her in his arms, and the way he held her would’ve melted my ovaries if I’d had any. Crossing to the living room, he laid a hand on Seb’s head. “I don’t want you on this all night. Only a few more minutes, okay?”

He frowned. “Where’re you going?”

“A meeting,” Jude said without missing a beat.

“A meeting?” Obviously unconvinced, Seb tossed his game on the couch. “For work?”

I noticed Jude’s shoulders tense and knew he wouldn’t want to continue to lie to his son, so I butted in. “Hey, I was thinking about ordering pizza for dinner. That all right?”

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